North Fork Robbers Roost and Goblin's Lair--Sept. 28, 2015

Hooked up with some friends for a day trip to the North Fork of Robbers Roost. The group consisted of Charlie and Jack (friends from work), Jack's son Mykal, his daughter Crystal and myself.

I love the Roost. Such a special place, not only beauty wise, but also for the historical aspects. I've had the North Fork on my short list for quite a while now and was finally able to descend it on an unseasonably hot late September day. Not sure the actual high temp, but it had to be near 90F.

We met at the Little Acorn at 5am and was at the upper TH by the gate by 9am. The hike to the first rap was pleasant in the cool morning and the canyon was equally as nice. All anchors were in great shape and webbing was nearly new. Because of the extra warm day, we opted to take the early exit and skip the Crack. We saw the exit and continued down to enjoy the last dark slot section before the last rap and then retreated back up canyon to start the exit hike. Made it back to the gate at 3pm.

The heat certainly took some of the charm away from what would have been a nice desert hike. Still beats the best day at work though! :2thumbs:

We finished the day with a run through the Goblin's Lair which was amazing. Although they now charge $2 for the permit on top of the entrance fee ($10) which was kind of a surprise. I asked the nice lady who took our money what the $2 was for, and she curtly replied "for us" :facepalm1:. She went on to say that she really had no idea what the new fee paid for. The Goblin's Lair took us just under 2 hours car to car.

Made it back to Happy Valley just after 9pm.


Looking down from top of first rap.
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At the first rap, I opted to downclimb it while on belay. Of course, it was easier than it looked :haha:

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Great canyon to practice meat anchors, sequencing and partner assists.

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2nd rap with awkward start.

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Looking back at the 2nd rap.

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Fun to see critters in the canyon.

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Goblin's Lair was a blast.

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Thanks Jack and Charlie for the pics and helping make this a fantastic day.

Cool photos above the rappel, I don't think I've seen that angle before.

Love the ears and tail. Looks like a fun group.

We saw so many snakes that week! Probably 15 snakes in 4 canyons.

Great TR Dave! Thanks for sharing. :2thumbs:

There are really a lot of rattlesnakes in the Roost. I seldom do a Roost canyon without seeing at least one.

I can't remember if I posted this story before, but last time I did Choprock Canyon, I was swimming through one of the darker, scarier parts of the Grim Section. I downclimbed into a committing pool and dropped in. And of course, you can guess what was swimming with me in this deep, narrow pool.

YIKES!